Green Scream

In the process of producing videos, I shoot all sorts of footage. One of the more elaborate types of shoots is green screen setups. I made a time-lapse video showing the composition of a recent green screen shoot. Since this is a time-lapse of an almost two-hour process that speeds by at a blistering pace, I call this 'green scream.' In a hurry? Just click here to see the video.

If you are not familiar with the term green screen (sometimes called chroma key), to put it simply, it is pulling a subject out of where they are (say an office with no windows) and placing him or her into a digital background like a sunny beach.
I have learned through training and experience the following keys to making green screen shoots work:

• Light the green screen smoothly. Smooth is more important than lighting it brightly.
• Light the green screen separately from the subject. Lighting independently helps avoid your subject from throwing shadows on the screen.
• Finally, if it's possible, you want to have some distance between the green screen and the subject to avoid green reflections on the subject.

This shoot was for my client City Wide Maintenance. This production involves providing a bright green screen, lights for the talent, two wireless mics, and a backup off-camera audio recorder for sound. With the completed shot in hand, I cut the footage into an existing City Wide video template resulting in a unique video for a City Wide franchise.

If you need a promotional, instructional or branding video, call me today. I offer a broad range of video production services.